


the beauty inside you

by orphan_account



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:41:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26473552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Whisper finds a temporary companion as he seeks shelter from a snowstorm, but an act of desperation may cost them both everything.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	1. the road to hell (is paved with good intentions)

_“Little one, who dwelt in the house of darkness – well, you are outside now, you have seen the light of the sun._

_Why are you crying, why are you yelling?_

_Why didn’t you cry in there?”_

Her singing was cut short by the sound of a knock at the door. “Now who could that be, at this hour?” She quickly set the kitchen back to normal, then hurried off to see who it was. The wind and the snow blinded her as soon as she peeked through the latch, so she settled for speaking through the intercom (she had to grudgingly admit that occasionally technology was more convenient than magic). 

“Hello, who is it, and how may I help you?” she asked. Only the wind howled in response and she frowned. “Just press the button at the bottom of the speaker.” The crackle of sudden static startled her, and she cursed under her breath. _Damn thing needs to be fixed…_

Realizing that someone was speaking, she focused her attention back on the door. “A place to stay?” she made out. _Normally I’d say no...but this storm is something fierce. Not to mention that I haven’t had a visitor in ages; it’ll be good to talk to someone other than my wisps…_

“Alright, come on in,” she said as she opened the door, revealing a half frozen blue mobian. “You certainly look like you need it.” She ushered him over to the table, weaving an ornate blanket out of magic to place around him. 

“So tell me - how did you end all the way up here?” she asked, taking a seat across from him. “Most folks don’t bother hiking past the ten mile marker.” 

“Well, I’m not most folks,” he replied. “A shopkeeper in the town at the bottom told me there was a valley of fairies up here, near Windmill’s Peak, so I thought I’d give it a look. Didn’t expect the snowstorm, though. Thanks for letting me in.”

She brushed it off. “I’m always grateful for company, seldom as it is. You may call me Whisper, by the way...I don’t believe I caught your name?” 

“Oh, it’s Sonic,” he said. “Sonic the Hedgehog.” 

“What an unusual name.”

“I could say the same for you,” he chuckled. “Why do you live all the way up here by yourself?” 

Whisper rested her chin in the palm of her hand as she thought for a moment. “I was never a fan of large cities,” she said. “Even as a child, I preferred the peace and quiet of nature over the bustle of crowds. After university, I decided it was time for a change of pace, and I moved here.”

“I can understand that. I can only handle crowds for so long before I need a break,” Sonic said. “And, well...I don’t mean to bother you too much, but what kind of food you got?” 

She blinked in surprise. “How rude of me!” she chided herself. “I’m sorry for not being a better host, I don’t get people here that often.” 

“That’s alright,” he excused. “Not like I planned on being here, either.” 

“Yes, yes, of course…” she murmured distractedly, already rummaging through her cupboards. “Is there anything in particular you want?”

“Hm...I don’t suppose you have a chili dog?”

“No…”

“Then anything will do, I’m not especially picky.” 

Whisper nodded and went back to searching. _Muffins? Soup? What do I have that can be made quickly?_ Her eyes fell on a stack of vials at the back of the cupboard, a few glowing ominously. She hesitated, glancing back at her guest. _Do I dare? It **would** be a good excuse to try it; who knows how long they’ve been back there…_

“Do you want some tea while you wait?” she found herself asking. He seemed to perk up, looking directly at her. Her heart pounded frantically (so she thought) as time gave the illusion of stopping while she waited.

Then he shrugged. “Sure, why not.” 

“No preferences?”

“Not really.”

_Okay...you can do this,_ she thought. _He won’t even notice! If this goes well, then I can finally return to my family with pride._ Making up her mind, she grabbed the vial and slipped it into a pocket. _Once the tea is done boiling, all I have to do is pour it in and stir thoroughly._

Whisper took her place back at the table, nervously tapping her fingers against the wood. “So, tell me a b – bit about yourself, Sonic.” _Damn it, I stuttered. Now he’ll suspect something._ She waited tensely, but he didn’t seem to pick up on it. 

“There’s not really much to say,” he shrugged. “I grew up on an island; thought I was gonna live there my whole life until Eggman showed up. You know who he is, right?” 

She laughed, feeling slightly more relaxed. “Just because I live up here alone doesn’t mean I’m ignorant of the world. I _do_ happen to have a radio.” 

“Being informed is always good,” he replied. Whisper nodded, moving to speak right as the pot whistled. 

“Oh, looks like the t – tea is ready. I’ll just...go get it now,” she said, cursing herself internally for stuttering again. She moved as slowly as possible towards the stove, the vial in her pocket seemingly growing heavier by the second. _It’ll be fine. This is for a good cause._

Whisper took her time pouring it, though the dread rose faster than she liked. _I should just forget about it...serve the tea normally. But then you’ll never have your miracle cure! And your family won’t take you back._ She took the vial out, clenching it within her fist as she just stared into nothing.

“Everything okay? You seem kind of shaky.”

“...I’m fine. Yes.” She took a deep breath and made her choice. Twisting off the cork, she poured it in as discreetly as possible and stirred. Turning around, Whisper made sure to put on as non suspicious a smile as she could manage and set the tray on the table. She offered the tainted cup to him, clasping her own tightly, staring down into it as the guilt threatened to overtake her. 

For an agonizing moment, there was nothing but loud silence. She was almost relieved when Sonic finally spoke. “This is actually pretty good. I – “. Her head shot up at the sound of something hitting a hard surface, feeling shock and then dread at seeing that Sonic was no longer in his chair. 

“...Are you okay?” she tried, but got no response. Dread moved aside for horror as she peeked under the table, seeing her guest sprawled out face down on the floor. It didn’t look like he was breathing. 

“Sonic?!” she cried, immediately rushing over. She knelt down and felt for a pulse, finding only the weakest of ones. “No, no, no, _no, no, no, **no, no, no!**_ ” 

_I should have never done this._


	2. Chapter 2

She paced back and forth endlessly, occasionally stopping to glance at her guest seemingly sleeping peacefully in the spare bed – but despite more than a few hours having passed, his breathing and pulse were still alarmingly weak. “What should I do?” she muttered. “Just pretend that he fell asleep and I carried him to bed? …No, he’d never believe that. I should just tell the truth…no, no, I can’t do that. He’s the first visitor I’ve had in seven years, I can’t risk it.”

Letting out a deep sigh, she fell back against the wall and closed her eyes. “What should I do?”

_"Hn, the loans,"_ he groaned from the bed, causing her to look over in worry. Sonic rolled over onto his side, clutching his head as if it were in pain. “’ere a’ I?” he mumbled. “An’ what happen’?”

Steeling her nerves, Whisper turned to face him. “It’s good to see you’re awake,” she said. “I was starting to think you were in a coma!” _Idiot. Now is not the time to be making jokes._

He moved his head slightly at the sound of her voice, eyes cracking open just wide enough to see. “A…coma?” he asked. “Why? What happened?” His eyes fell shut quickly; Whisper panicking internally for a moment that he had passed out again.

“You fell asleep while waiting for your food earlier,” she said. “It seems the storm wore you out.”

“Huh…I don’t remember anything.”

Another moment of panic. “You don’t?”

“No,” he replied. “Just that you were making tea.”

_Making tea? So he doesn’t remember drinking it?_ “I was,” she admitted. “But, um, you fell asleep before I could give it to you.”

“Oh…”, he said, then curled into himself, groaning. “My head hurts…”

“I – I have some medicine that can fix that,” Whisper volunteered. “Do you want me to go get it?”

He nodded, then winced as though the action caused him pain. She slowly backed out of the room, keeping her eyes on him the whole time. _If I use the lavender oils with the ginger, that should be enough…but what if it has even more side effects to the potion? It’s probably best to just use an ice pack for now._

_-_

The pain was too much. His head felt like it was splitting open; every sound amplified. His ears were folded flat in an attempt to lessen the disturbance, but failed two seconds later when Whisper walked back into the room. Her footsteps sounded like thunder and he hated it.

“Feeling any better?”

“No…ow,” he winced again, squeezing his eyes further tight. Something cold was pressed against the side of his head and he immediately reacted, uncurling and reaching up to try to remove it.

She gently moved his hand back down. “This is to reduce the headache,” Whisper explained. “It’s all I can do for now.”

He tensed up, though the ice was oddly soothing. After a few minutes the pain had subsided enough for him to think clearly, and he moved back into a flat lying position. “Thanks. It helps.”

“I’m glad,” Whisper smiled. A troubled look passed over her face before she added, “The storm has been over for a while now, so I’ll go wrap up a few things for you before you leave. For the road.”

“Wait, how long have I been out?”

“About three and a half hours.”

Sonic shook his head in disbelief. “I don’t remember being _that_ tired when I came here…”

“Well, sometimes fatigue catches up with us. Is there anything you’d like me to pack?”

“Uh…” _She seems really nervous for some reason._ “Maybe some of that tea you mentioned? I feel bad about making it go to waste.”

“No!”

He startled, casting her a confused look.

“I mean, no – tea wouldn’t do you any good to stay hydrated. Water is better.” She stood up abruptly and headed for the door. “In fact, I’ll go prepare it right now! Just wait here and rest easy until I get back.”

“Okay…” He furrowed his brows, thinking. _Something’s not quite right here. If only I could remember what happened…_

_-_

“Thanks again, for everything,” he said. “I appreciate your help.”

“No, it was nothing,” she waved off. “I’m always glad to help out, and I’m always grateful for company.” She seemed to waver, another troubled look passing over before she forced a grin. “Take care, alright? Don’t get caught in any more storms.”

“I’ll try my best, but no promises,” he laughed, then turned away to head back down the mountain path. _She’s definitely not sharing everything, with how weird she was acting earlier. I should have Tails see what he can find on her when I get back._

_-_

Whisper watched him leave, the guilt of lying twisting inside of her mind. “Maybe I jumped to conclusions,” she muttered to herself. “The fainting and the headache might’ve been the only side effects…” _I should’ve tested the potion sooner, so that I would **know** this stuff._

_But he’s gone now, and if he really doesn’t remember the tea, then he’ll never – nobody will ever find out._


End file.
